A nonprofit created to alleviate Interstate 25 congestion through a six-mile stretch of Thornton and Northglenn is developing a multi-platform outreach program for residents living and working along the new North I-25 Express Lanes Project.

Smart Commute Metro North is readying its rollout of a mobile application update to the Colorado Department of Transportation’s existing mobile traffic monitor by including the I-25 corridor affected by the express lane project, which began construction last fall.

“We’re trying to create an actionable thing that people can do instead of grinding their fingers into the steering wheel while sitting bumper to bumper,” said Paul DesRocher,spokesperson for Smart Commute. “The mobile app will let people know when traffic is bad, and will provide options for alternative commuting, like vanpools and bike routes.”

The CDOT mobile traffic application currently highlights I-25 corridors in Denver and Interstate 70 routes through the mountains. The collaborative update to include areas affected by the express lanes project is slated to launch in June.

Additionally, Smart Commute will be distributing 10-ride, Regional Transportation District ticket books to single-car commuters who live in the north metro suburbs to introduce them to public transportation options that will lessen the stop-and-go traffic at peak travel times for both directions on I-25.

“We’re really trying to focus on community change,” DesRocher said. “The books are for people who drive their cars. We’re trying to give them an incentive to drive to the park-n-Ride, hop on the bus and see how easy it is.”

Express lane construction will extend the existing high-occupancy vehicle lanes from their drop-off point south of 84th Avenue up to 120th Avenue. The project will also resurface all three general purpose lanes in both directions.

Work is slated for completion in October 2015,said CDOT spokesperson Crystal Morgan.

“We’re also lowering the roadway on 88th Avenue by about a foot and half to fix low clearance there,” Morgan said. “Smart Commute will be assisting us in getting information on those phases out to the public, and with improving education about alternate modes of transportation.”

Smart Commute is also developing a federal grant-funded vanpool program that would use luxury vehicles to break down the stigma of crowded or uncomfortable public transit. Interested commuters would have a monthly membership to the program.

“A lot of the people who are participating in vanpools are people who have options — they usually drive,” DesRocher said. “We’re trying to respond to that to make it a high-level commuting option.”

All alert and alternative transportation programs should be up and running in the next month.

DesRocher said: “Our first goal with this project is to switch someone who is commuting alone to alternative transportation. It’s vital for that constricted area.”

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